The present invention relates to an apparatus for determining the operating state of a cooling fan, and more particularly, to an apparatus for determining the operating state of a cooling fan used to dissipate heat generated from the operation of a computer system.
Generally, when a computer system is operated, heat is generated from the internal components of the computer. As the operating frequency increases, the amount of heat that is generated and released also increases.
Due to the heat that is generated and released during the operation of a computer system, the internal components of the computer can be adversely affected. Accordingly, the life expectancies of the components may be shortened, and the normal operating abilities of the computer system impeded. In a worse case scenerio, the internal components can be damaged due to the heat, thereby rendering the computer system wholly inoperable. Therefore, in order to prevent problems caused by excessive heat, a cooling fan is provided to forcibly discharge the internally generated heat and thereby lower the temperature of the computer system. Conventionally, there has been no device for detecting the operating state of the cooling fan in the computer system. If the cooling fan begins to operate in an abnormal condition, or ceases to operate at all, then the internally generated heat cannot be adequately discharged. Therefore, the computer system is at risk of malfunctioning, or incurring serious damage due to the excessive heat.